Shown in this May 14, 2010 file photo, Honor Flight Long Island's founder Chris Cosich died at his home April 21, 2014. He was 47.
Newsday's obituary for Chris Cosich(Credit: John Dunn)

When Chris Cosich of Amagansett learned of an Ohio organization that honors World War II veterans by flying them to Washington, D.C., to see the memorial dedicated to them, he told his then-wife he wanted to do the same thing here.

They founded Honor Flight Long Island, which since 2006 has escorted about 1,000 veterans to war memorials in and around the nation's capital, many of them making...

Get unlimited digital access $14.99 A MONTH

When Chris Cosich of Amagansett learned of an Ohio organization that honors World War II veterans by flying them to Washington, D.C., to see the memorial dedicated to them, he told his then-wife he wanted to do the same thing here.

They founded Honor Flight Long Island, which since 2006 has escorted about 1,000 veterans to war memorials in and around the nation's capital, many of them making the trip for the first time.

"It meant a lot to me to see the memorials and to be with the other veterans," said Milano, an Army veteran who arrived at Normandy a week after D-Day in 1944, and served in Europe for the rest of the war. "We shared a lot of stories. I'd want to go again."

Anke Cosich, married to Cosich from 2005 to 2013, said he was acutely aware that aging World War II veterans wouldn't be around for long. She said he treated them with the respect they deserved.

"He would just bloom like a flower," Anke Cosich said. "He was just excited to listen to their stories. And they would tell him stories that they had never even told their families."

At the national World War II Memorial, he knew they would see tangible evidence that society appreciated their sacrifice, she said.